Day 6 & 7

Day 6:

Day 6 was one of my favorite days last year and it has won the title again. Today is the day where all the special needs students get to come together for a big day of special Olympics games. This is special because today the kids feel normal, they get to play with bright colored things, and they get to run around and be silly with us. We have 9 stations each highlighting a special skill such as kicking. Then the kids get a check mark after they complete a station.  I just love looking around and seeing a smile on every student and staffs face. It's a beautiful day no matter how hot it is outside. 

We broke for a snack and the kids got to eat five slices of bread and a milk pouch, and they were jumping on me for more. I just could not believe this. They eat five slices of plain bread and fight for more. 

After the snack, we come together as a group to do a huge parachute and the famous tooty ta. Tooty ta was made famous last year by our team. It's a silly song that does not require English but requires you do to silly dances. Whenever we do it, kids run at us. We have up to 100 children doing it at a time with us. So you could imagine the look on the kids faces when we did it with them. Most remember the dance from over a year and a half ago!! After that, we did eye exams at a local MOHI school. 

Special Olympics day is definitely a special day. 

Day 7: 

Yesterday is too hard for me to talk about. It's one of the best days and one of the worst. It's the last day at the school, which means the last day with the staff and children. I had to say good bye to some staff and students that have touched my heart in so many ways. I do not know gods plan for me, but I know I am not finished here. Still, the going isn't easy. When kids run at at you arm and arm and ask you "will you remember us", kids that have not been in the special needs group, just two boys that were in the goodbye celebration. Those moments hurt my heart. So of course I said: "picture!" 

There's the two cuties. The day was filled with many joyful goodbyes. God allowed us to touch the community and the kids so much. For that, I am thankful. It's what keeps me from having a flood flow from my eyes. God has done amazing work for the special needs community since we started working with them. We have seen the number of that population rise in schools, we have seen the pre existing kids at the schools improve drastically, and we have seen the students and staff bond together to support these children. There is still a massive amount of work to be done.... God use me, have your way. That's all I can ask. I hope to be blessed and returning constistently. I want to continue to thank all those who have encouraged me, supported me financially and emotionally, and my pray warriors who woke up to my text in the middle of the night and immediately prayed for me. Thank you. Do you see the evidence of god working through your support to lift up Kenya? To change Kenya? To reform it and make it a country working towards his glory? Because I do. I see evidence all around of that. It's a beautiful place with beautiful people. I became even closer with a few staff members that have been instrumental in uplifting the special needs community by going into the slums and searching for these kids. They are hard to find but they do it willingly for God. They have become so dear to me that's it was almost impossible for me to say goodbye. 

We had to say goodbye because yesterday was the last day with the kids and the staff. They do not work on Saturdays. So today we have a quick safari. I cannot believe that yesterday was it, but the echoes of our work will continue even while we are away. 

Above are josh and Lisa's sponsored children that I was so so so blessed to see. Esther and Sheldon. Esther was so close to me the entire time. She had to be touching at least one part of me while she was with me. Sheldon would not talk, but he said thank you for the gift and asked me to say hi to josh and Lisa. We gave him pez and he would only eat one stack because the other 6 were for his sister. He is very giving.  Esther was beautiful and so loving. It was a blessing to meet them. 

Xoxo, 

Maddie 

Ps I do not re read these so I know there are always spelling errors but that makes it more me! :)